Floriography: The Language of Flowers
by Sunshine-and-Moonbeams
Summary: Castiel is looking for a gift for his mother's birthday, and decides to get her flowers. Dean is working as a florist to get through college. Destiel flower shop AU
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note:

This is my first story! Sorry for any spelling errors or if the storyline feels at all rushed or too OOC. This is a Destiel flower shop AU. I got all my information about flower meanings from a website called "Language of Flowers" so I'm sorry if any of the meanings are wrong, but go check it out, it's got tons of flowers and plants on it!

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of the characters.

* * *

Castiel Novak sighed. It had been a long day, and it still wasn't over. His mother's birthday was today and his brother Jimmy had threatened to kill him if he didn't show up to the party tonight. He sighed again. Jimmy could be so exhausting. _I have absolutely no idea what to get her,_ Castiel thought gloomily. He had considered, for a brief moment, not getting her anything. But he knew he couldn't do that to his mother. She didn't deserve that.

He wandered aimlessly down the main street of the small town where he worked, peering into the display windows of the small boutiques. _She doesn't really wear jewelry, and I would have no idea where to even begin shopping for clothing,_ he thought with a frown.

He was about to give up and head to the larger town a few minutes drive away, when a tiny flower shop tucked in between two much larger buildings caught his eye.

 _Perfect,_ he thought with a smile.

* * *

Dean Winchester had been working in the flower shop for about a year now. It wasn't his ideal job, but it paid for college. He also liked the small town it was located in, and rent was cheaper here than it was in a college town.

He glanced at the clock on the wall as he wiped down the counter.

 _Only five more minutes until I can close the shop for the day,_ he thought with a smile.

The bell above the door chimed and his smile wilted for a brief moment. He sighed, and plastered on his customer smile. "Hi, welcome to Vinny's Flower Shop! Can I help you find anything?" He called out.

A smooth voice replied, but Dean couldn't see who it belonged to. "Yes, do you have any pale pink roses?"

Dean moved around the counter, tapping his chin. "Hmmm, let me check the back."

"I would greatly appreciate that," the stranger's voice called back.

Dean wandered into the back room. He glanced around, and spotted several buckets filled with several shades of pink roses. _Damn, I'll have to create a custom arrangement for this guy._ Not that Dean really minded; he was good with flowers, it would just take some time, and he had really wanted to close up shop and get home.

He grabbed the bucket and hauled it out to the counter. A man was waiting there. Dean looked up and found himself staring into the bluest eyes he had ever seen. After what felt like a lifetime, he broke eye contact, only to find the man belonging to the eyes was quite good looking. He was tall and wore a nice suit with a blue tie that matched his eyes. He was also wearing... a tan trench coat? His dark hair was perfectly messy and he was sporting what looked to be a permanent 5 o'clock shadow.

 _Damn, that is one fine looking man._ Dean swallowed and finally found his voice. "So, uh, this is what we had in the back. If you like any of these, I can make an arrangement for you."

The man looked at the flowers with a critical eye. "Yes, I believe some of these will work nicely, but only the lighter pink ones."

Dean tilted his head to one side. "Why only the light pink ones?"

The man looked up at him curiously. "Oh, well this is for a gift, and I want to convey admiration."

"Light pink roses will convey admiration?" Dean was confused.

The man nodded. "Yes. Light pink roses convey admiration, whereas the dark pink ones are to show appreciation."

"Huh," Dean replied, a thoughtful expression on his face. "I never knew that."

"You mean to tell me you work in a flower shop and you don't even know basic floriography?" The man asked with a good natured laugh.

Dean chuckled as well. "Hey man, I'm not an expert, I just work here to pay the bills, okay?"

"Fair enough," the man said with a smile. "So, you do know how to arrange flowers, right?" His smile was teasing.

Dean replied with mock indignation. "You wound me sir, of course I do."

"Then prove it." The man's challenge was mocking, and a wide smile stretched his lips.

"Alright, you're on, pick your flowers."

Once the flowers were picked, Dean started putting together the arrangement.

"So, Vinny's Flower Shop, huh? Am I to presume you're Vinny, then?" the man asked.

Dean shook his head. "Nah, I'm Dean. Vinny owns the shop, but I work on his days off and when he's on vacation."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Dean, I'm Castiel."

Dean looked up at the man and tilted his head. "Not to be rude or anything, but what kind of name is that?"

The man, _Castiel,_ threw his head back in a laugh. "Honestly I have no idea. My identical twin brother's name is James, I usually call him Jimmy, and my older brothers are Michael and Gabriel."

Dean joined in on his laughter. "It seems to me like you got the short end of the stick, Cas." The shortened version of the difficult name slipped out of his mouth without a thought. His eyes widened and Dean wished he could take it back. He looked back down at his work to hide his embarrassment.

But Castiel was smiling. "Yes, it does seem so, doesn't it? And my name can be quite the mouthful," he finished with a laugh.

Dean looked up to see Castiel was still smiling and didn't seem troubled about a man he had just met spontaneously giving him a nickname. He returned the smile tentatively.

"So what about you Dean, any siblings?" Castiel prompted.

Dean grinned. "Yeah, I got a younger brother, Sam. Love him to death, but he's a handful. Wants to be a lawyer," Dean replied proudly.

Castiel nodded. "That takes ambition. Where does he go to school?"

"Harvard Law," Dean's entire being was so full of love and pride as he talked about his baby brother.

"Very impressive, that's a hard school to get into."

They continued chatting about school and work and family while Dean arranged the flowers to Castiel's liking. When they were finished, Dean went to ring them up, but Cas stopped him with a small request.

"Add a single one of the dark pink ones as well, please."

Dean complied, and finished ringing up the flowers. He handed him the bouquet along with the single flower. Castiel looked at it for a moment, then handed Dean back the dark pink rose.

Dean looked confused for a moment, before Castiel clarified his intention.

"To show my appreciation for the beautiful bouquet."

That was when Dean remembered their earlier conversation about flower meanings. He grinned.

"Any time, Cas."


	2. Chapter 2

A week later, Dean was _still_ thinking about the blue-eyed man. He frowned. _Cas probably doesn't even remember me, why am I still thinking about him?_

Dean shook his head to clear his thoughts and looked back down at his book, something he had to read for English class. The bell above the door chimed and he set the book under the counter. "Welcome to Vinny's Flower Shop," he called out. "Can I help you find anything?"

Silence. Dean rolled his eyes. Some customers could be so rude, who just ignores someone who is just trying to help? He turned around and was about to get his book back out when someone cleared their throat behind him.

He turned around to find himself looking into gorgeous blue eyes. "Hello again, Dean."

Dean blinked. "Oh, hey there Cas. Didn't expect to see you back again so soon." A smile crept onto Dean's face before he even realized it.

Cas' answering smile was also automatic, and slightly sheepish. "Yes, well, my mother was so enamored by the flowers, and I'm having dinner with her again tonight, so I thought I might bring her another arrangement."

"Alright, so what'll it be today?" Dean swept his arm out to the side, displaying a pot of pink roses.

Cas chuckled lightly, and then tapped his chin as though considering something. "Do you have any lilies?"

Dean cocked his head to one side. "I believe we got some in this morning, so I'd have to custom arrange them again."

Cas positively beamed. "Perfect, I was hoping you would have some."

After retrieving the pot from the back, Dean went to work arranging the ones Cas had picked. Their conversation was light and easy. Cas told Dean a bit more about his family, specifically his adorable niece, Claire, who was Jimmy's daughter. He also told Dean about how the birthday dinner had gone the last week. Dean told Cas about how his parents had died and he and Sam had been raised by his honorary uncle Bobby. He also told him about Ellen and Jo and everyone else he considered his family. Cas asked him how Sam was doing, and Dean told him about Sam's new girlfriend, Jess.

When the arrangement was finished, Cas once again asked him to ring up a single lily as well as the bouquet. And again, the single flower was handed back to Dean. He tilted his head at Cas as he accepted it. "And what do lilies mean, Cas?"

Dean could've sworn he saw a faint blush on Cas' cheeks, but he wasn't completely sure. "Lilies mean beauty and elegance."

Dean felt a faint blush spread across his own face, and found himself carefully studying his hands, holding the flower.

Cas cleared his throat. "Um, well, the work you do is so lovely and skillfully arranged."

"Th-thank you," Dean stuttered, feeling silly for thinking that Cas had been meaning that he was beautiful.

"Any time, Dean." And with a quick smile and a slight wave, he was gone.

Dean stared down at the flower in his hands for a long time before he finally got around to closing the shop.


	3. Chapter 3

Dean sighed. After what a fool he had made of himself last week thinking Cas had been talking about him when he gave him the lily, Dean didn't know if he wanted to see the man again or not. His life had been so much simpler before he met Cas.

He had always been attracted to guys and girls; he'd dated both. His family knew, and they loved and supported him anyway. It wasn't the first thing he shared with people, and he'd been bullied about it before. Dean was sure Cas hadn't guessed he was bisexual, and he was also fairly sure Cas wasn't into guys. Dean's luck was never that good.

He was pulled from his thoughts when the bell above the door chimed. He was about to call out a greeting when he saw it was the very person who was currently occupying his thoughts. _Speak of the devil,_ he thought with amusement.

"Hey Cas, what can I do for you today?"

"Hello, Dean, today I'm looking for yellow roses," Cas' smile was breathtaking.

Dean smiled in return. "You're in luck, we just got some in today. I haven't made the arrangements yet though," he chuckled. "You always seem to pick new flowers."

Cas ducked his head a little bit and seemed almost guilty, his chuckle sounding slightly nervous. "Bad luck, I guess. But I don't mind. Your arrangements are so lovely… and I like talking to you, Dean" Cas had looked back up and smiled almost shyly as he said the last part.

Dean's stomach did a little flip. "I like talking to you too, Cas. Alright, let me grab those yellow roses."

* * *

Before paying, Castiel once again asked for a single extra flower. Dean smiled as it was handed back to him. He looked up at Cas expectantly.

"Yellow roses mean happiness," Cas said with a bright smile. "I've been feeling very happy lately, Dean."

"That's great, Cas," Dean's smile was just as bright as Cas' was.

"See you next week, Dean!"

* * *

A million thoughts ran through Dean's head that night as he stared at the yellow rose sitting in the vase on his kitchen table. _"See you next week, Dean!" Did Cas really mean that? Will he be back again next week? And what did Cas mean that he's been "feeling very happy lately"? Could he be happy because of me? I'm being silly, he can't be. He's probably dating someone else. The flowers were probably for his new girlfriend._ Dean's stomach dropped, as one more thought crept into his mind unbidden. _I don't want him to be dating someone else: I want him to be dating me._


	4. Chapter 4

Several weeks had passed much the same: Cas came in once a week to buy flowers, and Dean always received a lesson and a flower. Dean always looked forward to their visits, but he felt like things were slowly changing. Lately Cas seemed distracted, like he was always thinking about something, or as Dean's insecurities seemed to think, _someone_ else. They talked about everything, and while Cas never mentioned a girlfriend, Dean couldn't help but wonder if he had someone. _Who else would he be buying flowers for once a week?_ Dean didn't know, and he wasn't sure he wanted to find out. All he knew was that he was falling hard for Cas.

* * *

Dean was sitting behind the counter once again. His leg bounced nervously and he found himself sneaking glances at the clock constantly. Cas almost always came in at 4:55pm, right before closing time. Dean looked at the clock. 4:54pm. He sighed. He tried to think about other things, like how he needed to do the dishes when he got home.

4:55pm. He also really, _really_ needed to do laundry. And vacuum. His apartment was a total mess, and he really didn't want to do anything about it. Sometimes he wished he had a roommate who was a clean freak, just so he wouldn't have to clean all the time. Then he thought about how much he had struggled living with Sam growing up, and knew that was a terrible idea.

4:56pm. Dean ran his hands through his hair. _Where is Cas?_ Dammit, he was thinking about him again. Dean sighed. He felt like a stupid lovesick teenager. _And I don't even think he likes me back._

4:57pm. Dean frowned. He was going to have to close the shop soon. He didn't want to, until he had seen Cas, but he didn't really have a choice if Cas didn't show up. _He's probably on a date with his girlfriend._

4:58pm. _I'm being stupid, I don't even know if he has a girlfriend and I'm jealous. I need to stop thinking about him._

4:59pm. Dean was staring at the door, practically willing Cas to walk through it. The door remained closed.

5:00pm. Dean had to close up shop. He sighed. _Maybe I can wait just a few more minutes._

* * *

By 5:10pm, Dean had decided Cas simply wasn't coming today. He couldn't help but feel disappointed. He hadn't realized just how much he looked forward to their weekly chats until Cas hadn't shown up. He sighed again. He'd been doing a lot of that the past week. _Longing,_ he thought, _that's what I've been doing. I've been longing to see Cas and I'm disappointed I didn't get to._

He went about finishing up his closing duties. He had to move some of the heavy pots in the backroom, and rather than lift them up, he chose to slide them across the floor. At one point, he thought he heard the bell above the door chime, but he was sure he had locked it, so he didn't think too much on it. When he finished in the backroom, he walked back out to the counter, and stopped dead in his tracks.

The counter was clean and empty except for one thing. Sitting in the center of the counter was a bunch of flowers. The bundle was tied with a white ribbon, and a small, folded piece of paper was on the counter underneath when he picked them up. The flowers looked to be more of the wildflower variety. They consisted of a long stem, with lots of tiny purple flowers on it. He knew he had seen them before, but didn't know what they were called. He picked up the piece of paper and unfolded it. Neat, slanted handwriting said _"Glycine (Wisteria), meaning '_ _your friendship is agreeable and pleasing to me' - Cas."_

Dean's chest was tight. He appreciated the sentiment, but felt certain Cas had seen right through Dean and knew he had a crush on him and was just trying to let him down gently. _"Friendship,"_ Dean thought with a sigh. He was certain he had just been rejected, without even having made any advancements, and that he wouldn't be seeing Cas again. His insecurities waged war within him as he finished closing up the shop.

He stopped at the liquor store on the way home.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N:

This will be the final chapter in this story!

Thank you guys so much for favoriting, following, and reviewing! Your kind words and support mean so much to me! Reviews are like my new drug hahahah ;)

I hope you guys enjoyed this story and I hope to continue writing and improving, so if you liked this story, keep an eye out for my next work!

* * *

School was finally out and Dean decided to take the next 2 weeks off. He was going to be leaving town to go visit Sam. _I am most definitely NOT avoiding Cas,_ he tried to convince himself. _I've been wanting to meet Sam's new girlfriend for a while now, and it's a good time. Vinny said he could watch the shop for the week. I need a vacation._ And so Dean found himself packing for a roadtrip.

Dean breathed a sigh of relief once he was out on the open highway. He loved driving and he loved his car. It was a black 1967 Chevy Impala and he lovingly referred to her as "baby," something Sam had always teased him about. Sam just didn't understand cars. He wondered what Cas drove. He realized cars had never come up in their conversations. Then he realized he was thinking about Cas again. _Dammit._ He turned up the radio and let Metallica take him away.

* * *

His vacation had been awesome. He hadn't realized how much he missed Sam. They used to be so close when they were younger, especially after their parents died. There had been a house fire when Sam was just a baby, and they had been the only two who made it out. Growing up, Dean had seen it as his responsibility to tell Sam about what their parents had been like and be a role model to his younger brother. People always told Dean he grew up too fast. He knew it was true; he'd given everything to Sammy. And he didn't regret a moment of it, even though he'd put his own dreams on hold. He shook his head to clear the memories.

Sam's girlfriend, Jess, had been sweet, and he was sure they would end up married soon. Dean could see how in love the two of them were. He expected to attend their wedding by Christmas. He was happy for them, but his heart also ached. He wanted to experience their happiness for himself.

He finished unpacking and decided to throw in a load of laundry. He scooped up the pile of dirty clothes he had been throwing on the floor, and turned around. His breath caught in his throat.

On his dresser sat the wilted flowers from 3 weeks ago. _Was it really that long ago? I haven't seen Cas in almost a month. And I still get sad when I think about him._ Dean cleared his throat and looked away, blinking rapidly. _Get over yourself,_ he thought.

* * *

When Dean went back to work the next week, he was feeling slightly better, but was still nervous. He didn't think Cas would come back, since he was certain Cas had been trying to gently let him down. He had to have seen all of Dean's awkwardness and realized Dean had a crush on him. Dean sighed. _I'm thinking about him again,_ he frowned.

Just before closing time, Dean decided to start his closing duties, starting with checking the stock in the backroom. A few moments after he disappeared into the back, the bell above the door chimed. He frowned. 4:55pm. _Damn, I really wanted to get out on time today_ , he thought with a sigh.

When he emerged from the backroom, he was in no way prepared for what he saw. Standing in front of the counter in jeans and a faded blue t-shirt, was Cas. His hair looked even more ruffled than normal and as Dean watched, he ran a hand through it, messing it up even more. He was staring down at something he was holding in his hand.

Dean sucked in a breath, and Cas looked up. Their eyes met and held contact. Neither of them spoke. Dean didn't know what to say, but his heart was hurting and his throat was tight. After what felt like an eternity, Cas looked away. He shuffled his feet slightly and cleared his throat. Dean felt his breath catch at the anticipation of what Cas might say.

Cas was looking at the thing in his hand again. Dean found himself looking at it curiously. It was some sort of… flower? It looked like it had come from a tree of some sort, since it seemed to be attached to a branch or a twig. Reddish, cone-shaped flowers sprouted from the sides of it.

Cas looked up, and their eyes met again for a brief moment, before Cas cleared his throat and looked away again, seeming to focus in on something just beyond Dean's left shoulder. "Do you have any red roses?"

Dean looked down. "Yeah there are some in the back, let me grab them."

* * *

Dean had to arrange the bouquet. It was the worst experience of his life. Cas had seemed to pull himself together while Dean was grabbing the flowers and was chattering on. Dean considered it chatter because it was meaningless. Instead of talking and learning more about each other, Cas was rambling on about the weather the past few days.

Eventually he asked where Dean had been for the last two weeks and they briefly talked about Sam. While Dean was telling Cas about how happy and in love Sam and Jess obviously were, he thought Cas looked almost… wistful. Longing. As though that was exactly what he wanted for himself. They were finally starting to loosen up and talk more normally with each other when Dean finished up. He turned to ring up the flowers. Cas did not ask for an extra.

Dean felt like his heart was about to break into a million tiny pieces. He handed the bouquet to Cas. Cas was still looking down at the flower he was holding. After a long moment, he looked up at Dean. He held up the flower. "This is a flower from a black poplar tree."

Dean looked at it. He wasn't sure what to say, so he didn't say anything. He looked at it for a moment, before looking back at Cas expectantly.

Cas took a deep breath. "When I saw it today, it was just so fitting. It means courage."

Now Dean was just confused. _Why was that fitting?_

"I needed courage today. Would you like to know why?"

Dean really wasn't sure he wanted to know why. He felt like he had a pretty good idea of why Cas would need courage. He thought about the red roses. Dean was pretty sure they had something to do with love and romance.

"Roses, red roses, they mean… love. The true kind of love, the kind that's deep and real. They're very romantic, that's why they're so popular at Valentine's Day…" Cas rambled on.

Dean's heart hurt and his head was spinning and he was pretty sure he really didn't want to hear this.

"Because they have so much meaning, I needed courage. I needed lots of courage or I would never have been able to do this." Suddenly, Cas took a step forward. And he held the roses out to Dean.

Dean stared at him blankly. "Wh-what?" he finally stuttered.

Cas looked incredibly nervous. "Dean, I-I want you to have these roses. I know you might not feel the same, but I needed you to know that I love you, Dean."

Dean could not believe his ears. He was pretty sure he was just staring at Cas open-mouthed.

"That first day I walked in here and was met with the greenest eyes I'd ever seen, that was when I started to fall in love with you. And then when we started talking and you were so sweet and funny and charming and beautiful, I just kept falling more and more in love with you. Do you know how hard it is to find an excuse to come into a flower shop every week? I started bringing Jimmy's wife flowers every week, or giving them to Claire, because I needed to see you. And I have another confession to make." Cas looked embarrassed, his cheeks slightly pink as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I would wander past early in the day on my way to work and I would look to see what was coming in on the truck, just so I could ask for those flowers because I wanted you to have to make a custom arrangement just so I could talk to you more. And I just… I don't know what happened a few weeks ago. I wanted you to know how much I appreciate you and enjoy talking to you, but I think I went about it the wrong way. I wasn't trying to push you away, Dean. I just wanted you to know how I felt. Even if you don't feel the same way." Cas finished his speech and looked at the ground.

Dean was positively floating. He was so completely, utterly, stupidly happy at that moment. _Cas loves me. Cas LOVES me._ He thought with glee. His brain took a minute, but it finally caught up. _Cas is waiting for me to say something, damn, quick, say something before he leaves._ Dean quickly reached out and took the flowers from Cas' outstretched hand. Cas looked up, his eyes widening in surprise.

Dean was silent for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "Oh Cas, I started falling in love with you from the moment I met you too. I just couldn't imagine you could ever love me back." A brilliant smile was stretching across Dean's face as he spoke.

Cas' answering smile could've blinded Dean. "Do you really mean that Dean?" His amazement was clear.

"Yes, Cas, I really mean it."

Cas stepped forward, arms open, and Dean stepped into his embrace. Dean rested his head on Cas' shoulder, and they stood there for a moment, relishing in the feel of finally being in the arms of their love. Cas whispered softly in his ear, "oh Dean, how could I not love you?"

Dean felt a grin stretching his face. He looked up, and their eyes met.

"Can I kiss you now?" Cas whispered it as though he was afraid that saying it too loudly would shatter their tender moment.

Dean's heart was about to beat out of his chest. "Yes," he whispered.

Their lips met, soft and sweet, and full of promise.


End file.
